Forgotten?
by TMNTgrl
Summary: Prompt 91:100 - Birthday. Leo's really anticipating his favorite day of the year. So why's everyone else acting like nothing's going on? Oneshot; Leo's POV.


**_Prompt 91 - Birthday_**

**_A/N: Maybe it is a commonly used base...but I like this. It's sweet. Leo's POV._**

* * *

I felt more energetic than usual that day. The reason wasn't random; holidays, especially a certain foursome's birthday, always made me feel less like a leader and more like a teen. That wasn't a feeling I got often. And tomorrow just so happened to be that certain foursome's birthday.

"Someone's hyper," Mikey observed as he watched me do a back handspring.

"Not hyper," I corrected, doing another handspring. "Just anticipating tomorrow."

Mikey shrugged mildly. I smiled, knowing his tendency for forgetfulness. Y'know, I'm pretty sure he has ADD. Or ADHD. Or both. Probably both.

We went on a late patrol that night. I stole a glance at the big clock as we passed it; 1:03 A.M. My lips curled into an anticipative smile, but the others didn't appear to notice the clock _or_ the smile. I figured they were just tired; it was late. They'd be just as excited after a good sleep.

* * *

I woke up at the usual time- one thing holidays can't change is my internal alarm clock. Splinter was up too, and I patiently waited for the pleasant greeting as I made myself a cup of tea.

Instead, I got, "Leonardo, would you please wake your brothers? Morning practice will be in one hour."

I tried not to wilt. Practice? On that kind of day? "Oh . . . of course, sensei." Oh, well. Practice wasn't the worst thing in the world. In my opinion. Mikey might disagree.

I went and woke them; Don was already getting up, Raph growled at me, and I had the typical tug-of-war complete with verbal banter in getting Mikey to move his shell from the bed. None of them mentioned anything about today. They didn't whine about practice- no more than usual. Weird. Really, really weird.

I was a little upset, truthfully. I found Mikey sprawled out on the couch. "Mike, what's today?"

"Uh . . . Tuesday."

"Anything particularly important going on?"

"Hmm . . . oh yeah!"

My eyes lit up.

"The Nintendo world championship is on! Thanks for the reminder, bro!"

And my face fell again. "Oh. You're welcome." I decided to go for Raph. "Hey, Raph!" I called.

"Yeah, what?"

He sounded grumpy. "Anything interesting happening?" I asked.

"No. Go away."

"Oh." I took a moment to think. "In the mood for something sweet-tasting?"

"No. Go away."

I took heed of the warning and headed off. Now I was lonely. I decided Don might be more pleasant to talk with.

"Donny?"

"Hey, Leo. What's up?"

I sighed softly and leaned on the back of his chair. "Is something wrong?" His soft, concerned tone made me feel a little better.

"Just . . . kind of having a bad day." I looked at the ceiling, trying to think of how to remind him of just what day it was. Instead, what came out was, "Want to play some basketball (1)?"

"Sure. I'll go see if Raph and Mikey want to play."

Somehow, that made me feel better. At least someone was willing to relax a bit with me. I was willing to relax and have fun. Why anyone else wasn't, I hadn't a clue.

I got out a basketball and Don soon met me near the hoop we had built from an old wooden board and some fish net. "Mikey's watching TV," Don reported, "and Raph didn't want to play. Guess it's just us."

We chatted and shot a few hoops for a while. "Don," I finally said, tossing the ball at the hoop, "does something feel off to you?"

"Something? Like what?"

"I . . . I guess I just feel like my internal calendar is off. I kept thinking something important was going to happen today."

"Oh. I'm sorry; is that why you look a little down?"

"Yeah," I murmured, passing him the ball.

He shot it at the hoop, and I caught it as it dropped down. "Sorry to ruin the fun," Don said, "but I have to do something really important."

I sighed. "That's fine." I tossed the ball around by myself for a while, but then I let it roll aside and sat down. It was just not my day.

But after a few minutes, the ball flew at my face; I caught it. "C'mon, dude," Mikey said as I stood up looking baffled. "Let's play NINJA."

NINJA is just our version of HORSE. We do some crazy stunts with the ball. It occupied me for the time; not that it wasn't fun, but I was still feeling that sting of disappointment. I beat him by a letter.

Mikey glanced at the clock. "Whoa! Sorry, Leo, but the finale for the Nintendo champs is on. I gotta see who wins the Smash tournament."

"That's fine," I murmured. He left; I was sad, and so I dribbled the ball around a bit.

Before I could know what was happening, something darted by, snatched the ball, and dunked it in the hoop. "Hey!" I shouted.

Raph laughed and tossed me the ball. "One-on-one, Leo. C'mon. C'mon, get it past me. What's the matter? I ain't that great at basketball. Let's go."

I couldn't back down from the challenge. I was _physically incapable_ of backing down from that challenge.

And . . . this time I actually felt a lot better. Just being around my brother and having a good time with him was elating.

We tied. "Nice game," Raph said, clapping me on the shoulder.

I smiled faintly. "Thanks, Raph. I . . . I really needed that." My stomach growled. "And now I need dinner."

"Uh, yeah, right." Raph stole a glance at the clock. "I'll go see if it's ready."

"Wha- hey, wait up!" I called, jogging to catch up with him.

I lost sight of him, but I headed for the kitchen anyway. I was hungry, be dinner ready or not. "Raph," I called. "Raph, what the shell did you run away for?"

I rounded the corner into the kitchen and gasped.

Hanging from the ceiling was a banner.

Sitting on the table was all the party food anyone would ever need.

In the center was a big cake.

And running up to me shouting 'happy birthday' were my brothers.

I don't think I've ever had a bigger smile on my face.

"Happy birthday to you too, guys!" I said. "I thought everyone forgot; I've been going crazy all day!"

"Of _course_ we didn't forget, shell-for-brains," Raph said. "It's our birthday too, y'know."

"We wanted to surprise you," Mikey explained.

"But . . . why . . . why just me?" I asked. "I . . . I don't understand."

"This isn't just the best time of the year for us because it's our birthday, Leo," Don said. "It's the time of the year when you're the happiest, and when you're the most relaxed. We like seeing you like that. We love it when you goof off and play and laugh with us."

"But we didn't want to make you feel totally lonely," Mikey added, "so we traded around playing basketball with you while the others worked on the cake."

"Guys, I . . ." I couldn't speak. My throat was knotted. They had gone to so much trouble just to see me happy . . . even though it was a special day for them, too, they had done so much . . . for _me_ . . .

"_Leo_ . . ." I felt Mikey shaking me. "You can't _cry_, Leo. Not only are you Leo, but you aren't supposed to cry on your birthday!"

"I'm not crying!" I said defensively, rubbing away a couple tears of sentiment. Okay, so maybe I was. Just a little tiny bit. But my smile returned a moment later, and I hugged all three of them as tightly as I could. "I love you guys," I whispered. "Thanks."

"Well, what are we waitin' for?" Raph asked.

"Let's par-tay!" Mikey shouted.

"Yeah!" Don and I chimed in.

Boy, did I eat _way_ too much junk food that night. Talk about a stomachache! But it was so worth it. We ate, we played games, we listened to music, we joked, we laughed, we opened presents . . . all until about three in the morning. It was at that point that we agreed to all crash in the middle of the floor.

I rolled onto my stomach and wrapped my arms around a nearby throw pillow. I was still in a state of blissful shock. I just couldn't believe how much they had done just to see me happy and relaxed . . . it made me feel better about myself. I wasn't just the boring turtle. I wasn't just a Fearless Leader. I was their _brother_. A brother they could have fun with, but still cling to and feel safe knowing he would protect them.

I felt something warm nestle against one side of me, I felt an arm over my shoulders, and I felt a chin and a torso on my carapace. I didn't even have to open my eyes to know who was where.

Mikey, using his big brother as a heating pad and a security blanket.

Raph, lending his strength and warmth while still being shy about showing emotion.

Donny, moving quietly and passively, while still showing he would stand for me through anything.

I sighed softly as the mist of slumber began to drift over my thoughts. "Thanks, guys," I murmured. "I love you."

I made myself a promise that I'd make next year as special for them as they had made that year for me.

* * *

**__**

(1) Note that they have a small basketball like hoop on the wall of the lair in the 2007 movieverse.

**_A/N: Don't forget to leave a review! Thanks for reading!_**


End file.
